Parliament beckons for Mia

It’s not often that a 15-year-old gets to write in the statute book, but Mia Harvey-Munro might just find she’s influenced the law of the land after a spell in the mother of Parliaments.

Mia, with her sights set on a career in politics, took the initiative when it came to finding a week’s work experience and contacted Labour’s front bench spokesperson on housing, Melanie Onn.

Shadowing the MP at Westminster gave Mia a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to watch from the sidelines as Ms Onn’s team contributed to shaping the new Tenant Fees Bill. This bill has attracted cross-party support for protecting tenants in the private sector from unfair charges by landlords. A suggestion of Mia’s has been included in the proposed list of amendments to the Bill, which is due to receive its third reading shortly.

During a busy week in the seat of power, Mia was given a tour of the Houses of Parliament. This included the secret passageway that connects Portcullis House to Westminster and also gave her a taste of what might lie ahead for her by standing in the green benches.

Midweek Mia, who lives near Brighton, was invited to attend Prime Minister’s Questions. “This was definitely the most memorable part of my time,” she said. “It was so interesting to watch politicians such as Jeremy Corbyn question the Prime Minister. Everyone around me began whispering when Boris Johnson entered the room – the whole experience was very exciting!”

After a thought-provoking introduction to lawmaking, Mia is more determined than ever to pursue her passion for politics. Ultimately, she aims to take a politics, philosophy and economics degree at Oxford. For now, though, it is out of the Commons and back into the classroom.